Māori traditionally built
wharerau as temporary dwellings used for an extended period
while camping at a food gathering site.

Project Manager
Rua McCallum says, “The wharerau was not only used as a
dwelling, but functioned as a place of learning through the
medium of storytelling. Stories were the vehicle in which
ancestral histories could be related including creation
narrative and whakapapa (genealogy).

“These were very
important aspects of traditional life and remain so even in
contemporary society.”

Construction of the wharerau
began in April with the external cladding material (ferns,
tussock and sedges) being applied from 21 to 27 May. During
this period there will be two times a day (10.30am-11.30am
and 2pm-3pm) when the public can participate in the
preparation of the cultural materials and see the actual
construction taking place.

A film about the building of a
wharerau will be shown at the Museum on Tuesday, 27 May at
12.15pm.

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